Ancora Comfortable With Its Offer for H.B. Fuller Unit

Summary

Ancora Holdings alternatives president James Chadwick explains the activist firm's proposal to buy H.B. Fuller's building adhesives unit for as much as $1.2 billion. He argues the sale would inject roughly $1 billion of cash and fix H.B. Fuller's post-AMS leverage problem while refocusing the company on higher-growth adhesives. Chadwick says Ancora has not heard from the company and is prepared to escalate to a broader activist campaign if needed.

• Ancora proposes acquiring H.B. Fuller's building adhesives segment for as much as $1.2 billion.
• Chadwick sees the deal as a win-win, injecting about $1 billion cash and reducing leverage.
• H.B. Fuller's AMS acquisition leaves it with over 4x leverage and more than $3 billion in net debt.
• The building adhesives unit is described as lower margin and lower growth.
• Ancora says its proposal has no financing contingency and is backed by its AUM.
• H.B. Fuller has not responded since a July meeting, prompting a public letter.
• If the board does not engage, Ancora may pursue a broader activist campaign, proxy fight, or push strategic alternatives.